Smile, darn you, smile!Hi there. I am Miss Janice, an educator and lover of life! I enjoyed my 21 years in China, my 38 years as an educator, and I am back in the US now sharing my US experiences with you.Good morning to you all! Yesterday one of our readers told me she liked me smile, and I thought it sweet and wanted to explain to her why I love to smile. I thought I would share with you my philosophy of smiling. Everywhere I go, you will see me smiling at strangers and happy in life. I believe this is one reason that children were drawn to my stories, and why they were so happy to be in my classroom and around me. I have always tried to find a way to share happiness with those I love.When I was 9 years old, we were driving in downtown Springfield, Illinois. We had just left the YMCA, where we had our weekly swimming lessons. It was a really hot day, and my window was down. We were stopped at a stoplight. I looked out my window and saw a man walking down the street looking so sad, and my heart felt so sorry for him. He looked like he was having a very hard day, and that the weight of the world was on his shoulders. We made eye contact, and I smiled at him. I gave him a big, beautiful smile, hoping that somehow it would help, as it was all I had to give him. It did. All of a sudden his face lit up, and he smiled back at me. It was a magical moment I will never forget. I felt as if somehow my smile had helped him in a time of deep trouble and need, and I felt as if I had given him a gift.From that moment on I realized the power of a smile. I realized that smiles are free, and that they have the ability to change the way you feel, the way others perceive you, and the way that others feel. A smile has a way to change the world. At that time I had crooked teeth and a funny mouth, but my smile was genuine and you could tell from my eyes that the smile was coming from my heart. Even today I believe that a smile at the right time can calm a situation, that it can bring comfort, and that it can bring sunshine into a rather dark a sometimes bitter world when needed.One song my mom used to sing to us when we were little was called “Let the Sun Shine in”. It was a song, and it is still in my memories. I could sing it verse by verse today, but I will spare you that. I am not a great singer! It says to open up your heart and let the sun shine in. I do truly believe that that is what happens when we open our hearts. We have pure smiles, full of sunshine and warmth, and those in turn make us more joyful and full of love. I believe that saying a kind word is the easiest thing in the world, and I say them often, even to strangers that I have just met or passed. If I see someone who needs a smile or a kind word, I will never hesitate to give them both freely. Our role on earth is to help spread sunshine and love, not to keep it inside of us. I wonder what would happen if all of the leaders on the earth did this. Imagine what would happen if all of us did this; if we chose a day that we called 'kindness day’ and we all went out and spread sunshine to others on that day. Kindness truly is contagious. I truly believe that the sunshine would spread far and wide, and that we would have a happier community and that we would bring warmth into the world for others.I often think about Mother Theresa, and her belief that “Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” She also said that “We will never know all the good that a simple smile can do.” What a wise woman she was!So, that is why I smile often. My father always told us that each morning when we wake up, the decision is always up to us, whether we wake up with a smile on our face or a frown on our face. There is so much truth in that!That is it for today. I truly do wish you all a beautiful day, full of smiles and kindness. Please come join me next week as I share my US experiences with you. Have a super week, and smile!
跟Janice学英文 视频版听美国教育大师Janice Sigrist的奇迹之旅，重拾说英语的自信。Pick up your English again！Janice原版：
